Thursday, November 28, 2019

Overpopulation Essays (700 words) - Demography, Population

Overpopulation Refinance now homeowner even if you have bad credit. 185 loc Overpopulation During the first 2 million or so years of its history the human population was a minor element in the world ecosystem, with at most 10 million members. In the New Stone Age, less than 10,000 years ago, the number of humans began to increase more rapidly. The rough equilibrium maintained before Neolithic times gave way when the human population developed agriculture and animal husbandry and no longer had to spread out in search of game. With the abandonment of a hunting-gathering way of life and the rise of permanent settlements and eventually cities, the human population underwent dramatic growth. By the beginning of the Christian era it had reached 250 million, and by 1650, half a billion. Growth of population during 20th century was very rapid. In 1994 the total world population was estimated at about 5.6 billion people. It increased nearly by 4 billions of people during past 100 years. The most significant world trend is that death rates are currently falling in poor and rich countries alike, while birthrates remain high in most poor countries and low in most rich ones. Exceptions are the generally higher death rates of Africa and the high birthrates of the rich oil-producing countries. The most populous countries, in descending order, are China, India, the United States, Indonesia, Brazil, and Russia. The U.S. population totaled about 260.8 million in 1994. In the 1990s about 4.1 million children were born annually in the United States, and more than 2.1 million persons died yearly. The greater number of births is due in part to a fertility rate that has increased by nearly 20 percent since the mid-1980s. International immigration, both legal and illegal, is another major element in U.S. population growth. Legal immigration has recently amounted to about 1 million per year; illegal immigration is thought to be several hundred thousand. In China, the world's most populous country, the 1994 population was estimated at nearly 1.2 billion, more than double the 1953 census population of 584 million in mainland China. China's annual increase has been estimated at 1.1 percent annually. India's population of more than 911.6 million people (1994 est.) is increasing faster than that of China, and if present trends continue, it will soon catch up with or surpass China. Since the disintegration of the USSR, Indonesia and Brazil are now the fourth and fifth most populous countries, with 1994 estimated populations of 199.7 million and 155.3 million, respectively. Sixth-ranked Russia has about 147.8 million people (1994 est.). It has a negative natural increase rate of - 0.2 percent, comparable to the low or negative rates found throughout Europe. The arithmetic is simple. Our oceans can supply a limited amount of fish. Farm production is limited by the amount of available land. Once human demand for food, energy, and other materials exceeds sustainable levels, further increase in our population will mean that we each will get less and less and less. Today I will tell you about the most populated country in the world, China. Chinese population exceeds 1.1 billion people. 13% of people in China live in 52 major cities. City streets are often overcrowded with people, bicycles, cars, buses and other types of transportation. Most Chinese people live in the countryside. They plant rice and other crops, catch fish, and do many other jobs. Although there many people who live in the countryside, but work in cities. Chinese are very hard and good working people. Like you can see from the last paragraph, China is off to a good start, but its fast-growing population can stop China from achieving a high standard of living. China remains one of the worlds poorest nations despite its enormous gains in industry and agriculture since 1950. To control rapid population growth, the government launched a massive campaign the mid-seventies to encourage young people to marry late and to have few children. In 1980's, the government called for a target family size of three, and introduced many laws to limit number of children to one, in special circumstances, two. These measures helped to slow population growth dramatically. Nonetheless, China continues to have about 18 millions more new mouths to feed each year - a heave drain to its resources. Bibliography: 1996 Groiler Multimedia Encyclopedia Lands and People 2 China Psychology today Jan/Feb 95 volume 28 issue 1 1996 World Book 1995 Americana Encyclopedia

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Comparison of Havisham Essays

Comparison of Havisham Essays Comparison of Havisham Paper Comparison of Havisham Paper Carol Ann Duffy decided to write poems about to lonely women, which appear in literature. Both female, both reclusive, but for very different reasons. I would like to show how Carol Ann presented those distinctions and similarities. To begin with, the voices of the poems are both single and female. However, the reasons of being forlorn are contrasting. Salome is aware of her loneliness and the fact that she was involved in many one night stands: Id done it before (and doubtless Ill do it sooner or later) The reason of Havishams spinster state is that she was jilted by her fiance she is not wanted anymore. Both ladies are exposing in the poem their feelings concerning men. Havisham, has assorted emotions concerning her ex-boyfriend, which she expresses in an oxymoron: Beloved sweetheart bastard To my mind, Salome doesnt embark herself in a platonic relationship she rather enjoys the pleasure of physical closeness. She doesnt even remember the name of the man, who shared with her bed all night. woke up with a head on the pillow beside me whose? what did it matter? Both women can be also associated with death. Salome is presented with a head on the platter (she ordered to kill someone) whereas Havisham is killed parts of her own break. Moreover, Carol Ann Duffy admits that her main characters have sexuality and emphasizes it. Havisham fantasizes through the nights: Some nights better, the body lost over me, myfluent tongue in its mouth in its ear then down till I suddenly bite awake Salome does not dream about physical relationship, she admits that she had intercourse and wants to clean her act, get fitter, cut out the booze and the fags and the sex The structures of the poems are divergent. Although both have four stanzas, in Havisham they are more regular and tight always four lines in one whereas in Salome irregular. Probably it is to show the immutability of Havishams feelings (revenge from the day of the marriage) and the undecided Salomes. Furthermore, both of the poems are in the form of a dramatic monologue and they both have ambiguous parts. In Salome it is for example: I flung back the sticky red sheets They can be covered in blood either by an assassination or a sexual act. The voice in Havisham sais that Ive dark green pebbles for eyes, ropes on the back of my hands Again, this is vague whether the ropes are her veins or she just expresses her wish for revenge or it is a reference to Dickens the natural mother of Estella, Molly has strangled a rival and has unusually strong hands. Although both poems use such technique as enjambement, only in Salome there are anachronims. Furthermore, the language in both poems is dissimilar. This is probably because the age difference between Havisham and Salome and the fact that Duffy meant to make the daughter of Herodias more coeval and contemporary. As a result Salome uses slang as and aint life a bitch whereas Havisham uses less informal words as pebbles, corpse. As a result, the tone in Salome is much more relaxed and in Havisham more disturbing. Carol Ann Duffy also uses rhyme only in Salome in order to build tense leading to the final conclusion. On of the most significant similarities in both poems is that they both use the idea of subversion. The character of Salome appeared in the New Testament books of Matthew and Mark. Miss Havisham was originally invented by Charles Dickens and presented in Great Expectations. Duffy took both vharacters and presentes them in deeper, unconventional way. She showed the layer of the human being, which was a taboo and widered it. To sum up, the whole purpose of poems entitled Salome and Havisham is to present much more deeper the soul and the attitudes of those females concerning men. The whole text is subordinated to this aim language, structure present their characters. That is why the main differences between those poems will come from the dissimilarrity of personality. As a result those contradictions will be reflected in any other parts of the poem.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Organizational Communication Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Organizational Communication - Term Paper Example by using images & symbols, vision, mission, objectives, goals, interaction of employees with the technology and amongst themselves, exercising power, values, and how these dynamics in communication helps the organisation to be successful in their endeavour.(U. S. Department of Education, 2007). The importance of the organization communication increases proportionally as the size of the organisation increases in terms of its employee’s strength, diversity and distributed operations across geographies. The process of ensuring smooth communication within organisation becomes further challenging when the employees in the organisation are speaking same content in a different way which to an extreme can be conflicting in nature which not only confuses the recipient of the communication but also put organisation’s image in jeopardy. The conflicting nature of the communication is not limited to organisations which are new in business but are seen to be coming from established o rganisations as well (Paul A. Argenti and Thea S. Haley, 2006). The streamlining of communication from the leaders of the organisation can be a daunting task if not managed properly. The challenge becomes even bigger when the organisation has its branches in various countries and the head of the centre in a particular country speaks differently from his colleagues. There could also be instances where the written/published documents from the organisation might be conflicting in nature. (Cheney, G., 2000) This paper provides the overview of Church’s Content-Processes-Roles (CPR) model of organisational communication (Church, A., 1996) studies the difference in the content of the communication by different organisations especially Walmart and finally provides the recommendations on handling the irony of the two different contents of the communication. The selected organisation is Walmart and the case study is set in October 2005 when Walmart published two documents which were poles apart in

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Customer behavior Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Customer behavior - Case Study Example By cooling down, one is prepared to answer back courageously and explain exhaustively if the statement is untrue. It must be understood that some customers make negative comments in order to trick hotel management into offering them discounts, free visits to the hotel, and money back guarantee. Make professional responses (Cheng et al, 5). Customers are ken on any statement made in favor or against the allegation. Therefore, hotel managers should show empathy and concern to show customers’ feelings are respected. Offer a long lasting solution when necessary and be willing to learn from what customers comment. However, in cases where defaming statements are made, it is good to request review sites administrators to evaluate its credibility and remove such comments if they are not worth. In most cases, customers buy commodities depending on what others have commended about them. I can only buy items through an online platform if am guaranteed quality. Therefore, I will check what previous buyers have said about it. The same applies to hotel bookings. When visiting new places for a tour, it is always difficult to tell where to spend the night. However, through the help of travel directories and customer reviews in regards of hotels in that location, it is easy to make an informed decision on where to stay depending on cost, customer service, and comfort. Consumer behavior is shaped by what people hear, see, and read about products they intent to purchase. Therefore, marketers must be keen in making sure customers get the very best out of the products. However, it is almost impossible to avoid negative online reviews. Therefore, companies must be ready to learn from the reviews in cases where they make sense and explain to customers where there is misunderstanding. Cheng, Vincent TP, and Mei Kun Loi. "Handling negative online customer reviews: the effects of elaboration likelihood model and distributive justice." Journal of

Monday, November 18, 2019

Compare and Contrast Paper. 21 Jump Street Essay

Compare and Contrast Paper. 21 Jump Street - Essay Example Drug intake, committing illegal actions, pretending as prostitutes, lovers and gang members is a common practice of undercover police officers to maintain their cover. Simultaneously, many at times such drug usage, addictions and other illicit habits (to maintain their cover) ruin personal lives and relationships of these officers and they consider them self exempt of law/ accountability due to their undercover assignments (274, Pollock). A chase on the freeway by the motor cycle gang from the park led Jenko and Schmdit to destroy public property on the freeway and threatening lives of several citizens in it as well. However, in real life these undercover agents are not allowed to destroy public property to large extent like displayed in the movie and jeopardize the lives of innocent citizens to secure their cover. The argument on Schmdit’s hesitation to open fire upon the gang member is a question mark, as undercover agents are employed to bring information instead of fighting the culprits them self. These informants are mainly installed to gain extensive knowledge of the drug mafia and by no means required to kill the dealers or their agents on their own (Lee,

Friday, November 15, 2019

Loyal Readership Of Different Types Of Media Media Essay

Loyal Readership Of Different Types Of Media Media Essay Loyal readership of different types of media (newspapers and magazines) can be very useful for advertisements. For instance; if a firm or brand is advertising a good or service for a particular geographical area, they can do so easily through print media. A local daily newspaper or a weekly tabloid would be the finest medium to promote a new shopping center or mall. However, there are limitations to this medium. It may not give a wide reach for all time. On the contrary, Internet can target a huge audience. (Buzzle 2010) The competition is tough between print media and electronic media. However, both the media remain successful in shaping the opinion and advertising the product. Mass communication floods readers on routine basis in the form of both print and electronic media. One might feel that print media has more advantages in contrast with electronic and vice versa. Rather, each of these types of mass communication has its own characteristics. Bothe the media share much in common. In fact, the newspaper industry depends on both print and electronic media to broadcast news to its readership base. (Withers) While both print media and electronic media venture to communicate textual content, each of these two types of communication must attend to unique concerns in order to deliver readable content. Computer has its own benefits including Spell-check and auto-suggest functions in word processing programs. These functions assist the authors in writing. Moreover, online audiences are inclined to be more responsive and are more enthusiastic for participating in debates. Other features available online such as website layout, font size and screen glare are more fascinating and cheaper as compared to the print version. However, the credibility of content and authenticity of news is questionable when it comes to online papers. (Fiore 2010) It should be understood as well that there is a problem with having everything be web-based, something people know if theyve ever been working in an environment where their work depends on having a network connection. What if you cant get online? What if theres a problem with the website? What happens when the 10-year-old Cambodian hackers consortium finally gets lucky with their SuperVirus? (Fiore 2010) Browsing material available within print and electronic media requires readers to employ different search plan. With minimal knowledge and software, computer users can create searchable PDF documents at their homes or in their offices. Likewise, search tags are a great help to users if they want to search emails, photos and virtual bookmarks. Print media can be organized into folders (for e.g. newspaper sections). It is on a readers convenience to prefer one type of media over another. It depends profoundly on readers own psychology. (Withers) Seemingly, print media is being overcome by electronic media. In this epoch of information technology, old methods of transferring information such as the Newspapers and magazines are slowly but surely losing down their magnitude in contrast to the computer even in the marketing world. (Hrastnik 2005) Whatever the case may be, media has strong influence on public ever since the advent of mass communication through media. Our opinions are shaped by what we are shown and told on television and in newspapers. Populations personal belief or judgment regarding certain facts or issues is majorly formed by media. Journalism or any other form of transferring information increasingly relates to psychology of public. Psychology brings cognitive theories to media studies. It helps the journalism to relate more to what is presented by media and what is received by the public. Participatory journalism is the result of such theories. In educational discussions of mass media, psychology has long endowed with perceptions, techniques, and theories of its function. All types of media can be portrayed in simple terms, for instance if someone comments about a movie that it was comical or romantic or heartbreaking, or saying an article was very distinguished, or describing the Internet as chaotic. But when the theories of a discipline are added to an investigation of something, those theories give the subject matter a structure, or a hypothetical standpoint. Though what psychologists have revealed about media and its interaction with public is diverse. Some psychologists explore the messages we see or hear and their influence on people: subliminal messages in advertisements or the way women are portrayed on television. Women on television are commonly very skinny. Psychologists have done research that proposes that the bonny women on television make a stereotype that reads aloud that women should be thin. But the real-life women have different body sizes so they dont feel good about themselves. Research also tells that because of these stereotypes eating disorders have increased among women. Sometimes it is what we do not see and hear in the media that makes or enforces a stereotype. For instance, have you ever seen a sitcom that revolves around an Asian-American family? Not seeing Asian-Americans on television keeps such people invisible in the mainstream of society. Since the media has become a source of shared cultural experience that people use to understand the world around them, it is important to explore what we are getting from the media. (Lane 2001) Nonetheless, social responsibility is the basic element for any medium of communication in which media get support to report responsibly. Equilibrium must be struck between complete control over information and lack of restraint.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Recessions and Depressions Essay -- Economy, The Great Depression

America has experienced several recessions and depressions in the past. Most recently, the housing crisis sparked a recession which has led to rising unemployment. The largest recession so far has been the Great Depression of the 1930s. A stock market crash in 1929 caused loss of savings which led to unemployment, lower wages, and a distrust of the banking system. The affects of it lasted into the 1940s. Franklin Roosevelt was elected president during this period; legislation he passed tried to alleviate the suffering of the public. As a result of the Great Depression, Franklin Roosevelt created the Civilian Conservation Corps to employ jobless young men and improve government land. The decade directly preceding the Great Depression was prosperous and lucrative. Many factors led to this era, often called the roaring twenties. The use of labor-saving machinery affected several industries. Henry Ford’s Model T suddenly was much cheaper, which enabled more families to purchase one. Less than seven million cars were on US highways in 1919. That number leaped to 23 million in 1929. This increase of cars and travel led to the expansion of gas stations, roadside restaurants, and service and repair stations. The use of machinery decreased the amount of labor needed on farms while increasing the yield per acre. Prohibition was still being enforced so the need for moonshine created an economic niche for those entrepreneurs not afraid of the law. Radio sales also increased rapidly. Total radio sales in 1922 were at $60 million while 1929 had radio sales totaling $850 million. This increase of radios also enabled more commercials to reach the ears of consu mers. For the first time, marketing messages were being sent direct... ... always conservation. As the depression slowly lessened and the program drew to a close, critics began to wonder if the Corps was conserving public lands, or over-developing it (â€Å"New Deal for Parks† 8). The looming threat of World War II redirected the efforts of the CCC. While the Corps still worked on government land, it was mainly on military bases to build or refurbish airfields and artillery ranges. When the United States officially joined World War II, funding for the Corps was cut. Even if funding had been continued, the program would’ve shrunk drastically as many of the enlistees joined the Army and were sent overseas to fight the war. The Civilian Conservation Corps is widely viewed as one of the more successful programs of the New Deal. It employed half a million young men while improving thousands of acres of public land (New Deal for Parks 8).

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Sumatran Orangutan

The pongo abelii (Sumatran Orangutan) is classed as critically endangered under the IUCN red list. In 1994 the estimated number of Sumatran orangutan was 12,000. This number declined further in 2003 where the estimate shown 7,300 and again in 2008, estimating 6,500. This clearly is a massive reduction in the species population at a loss of 5500 orangutans in a 14 year period. The Sumatran orangutan lives on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia, and is commonly found in the lowland and hilly tropical rainforests. Indonesia’s forests are threatened with legal and illegal logging and deforestation. This is a huge problem, not only to the orangutans but also to other plant and animal life. This is a difficult living situation for the orangutan, which are living in smaller areas which are located at the northern region of the island. With this consisting of lesser forest areas, this offers ease for the poachers and hunters. One of the bigger problems of this human threat to orangutans is the illegal pet trade. The poacher will have to kill the mother of the young they are snatching. This leaves the younger defenseless as they require care to survive. The younger orangutan is seen as a popular pet. This can also result in further decline in numbers as there are more being killed therefore less being unable to breed. The breeding period of the orangutan is much slower than that of any other primate. The smaller number of offspring being produced is not able to meet the rapidly decreasing orangutan population. Over time this will develop into a worse state as the decreasing numbers worsen. I have chosen to prioritize the pongo abelli (Sumatran orangutan). This is because of the current conservation status labeled on this species. The recovery of this species will be slow. Although the threats to the orangutan are similar to that of the other species, they are incapable of producing larger numbers to cope with the much needed larger population in order to exist and are more capable of becoming extinct.

Friday, November 8, 2019

Basic Spanish Adjectives of Emotion

Basic Spanish Adjectives of Emotion Talking about emotions in Spanish isnt always simple. Sometimes discussion of emotions involves using the subjunctive verb mood, and sometimes emotions are expressed with idioms using the verb tener. That said, Spanish frequently uses adjectives to express emotions much as English does. Here are the most common adjectives of emotion, along with their usual meanings, with a sample sentence for each: aburrido (bored) - Me gusta escuchar mà ºsica cuando estoy aburrida. I like to listen to music when I am bored. enojado (angry) - Muchos estaban enojados con el gobierno. Many were angry with the government. feliz (happy) - No creo que uno pueda tener una vida feliz sin algunas reglas. I dont think one can have a happy life without some rules. nervioso (nervous) - El chico nervioso temblaba como una pequeà ±a hoja. The nervous boy was trembling like a little leaf. preocupado (worried) - Las madres estn preocupadas por la epidemia de dengue en la regià ³n. The mothers are worried about the dengue epidemic in the region. tranquilo (calm) - Estamos ms tranquilos por haber recibido una explicacià ³n satisfactoria. Were calmer for having received a satisfactory explanation. triste (sad) - Toda la pelà ­cula es triste. The whole movie is sad. Keep in mind, as in the examples above, that the adjectives of emotion must agree with the nouns (or pronouns) they refer to. Also note that some of these words can vary in meaning somewhat depending on whether they are used with ser or estar. Note also that it is common to express emotions in ways other than with adjectives. For example, enojarse is a verb meaning to get angry and preocupar is a verb meaning to worry, and both of those are frequently used when talking about those emotions. Also, the verbal phrase tener miedo is by far the most common way to express fear. Although there is an adjective, asustado, meaning afraid, it is more common to use the tener phrase when describing how a person feels.

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Military Intervention in Afgha essays

Military Intervention in Afgha essays Justification for retaliation against acts of hatred proves to be very difficult to develop, maintain, and most of all prove. The September 11th assault that "was so sudden and so shocking that it seemed to obliterate many of the doubts that were the legacy of the country's tortured Vietnam experience. Polls show that up to 90% of Americans support a military response," wrote Mark Barabak. However was this support justified? Would a military response that would destroy yet another nation be moral? That would tear apart families, leave orphans, and spawn more hatred and vengeance? I believe that not only does the current military intervention in Afghanistan do all this but it creates other damages to nations other than Afghanistan nor does it account for the lives lost in the battle that is supposedly between right and evil, but rather in my eyes, evil and those who want to get back at evil. The pulverizing of a battred country just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of innocent civilians have already been killed by U.S. bombing in pursuit of Osama bin Laden. The Pentagon has confirmed numerous instances of "collateral damage," including a 2,000-pound bomb that struck a residential area near Kabul. The United States' perceived disregard for collateral damage may lead many to conclude that we are waging a war against Muslims writ large. In so doing, we are losing the battle for the hearts and minds of people who are necessary in the fight against terrorism. Our attacks on population centers are causing a huge refugee problem that neighboring countries can't handle. By October 12, 350,000 people had amassed in the northern Panjsher Gorge and over 150,000 had fled to the provinces of Tahor and Badakhshan.(Barabak) United Nations officials predict that 1.5 million will leave their homes, risking mass starvation in the brutal Afghan winter to escape the bombings. (Kurtz) This influx of Afghans into Pakist...

Monday, November 4, 2019

Concepts of Effective Active Learning Speech or Presentation

Concepts of Effective Active Learning - Speech or Presentation Example John Dewey, author of the School and Society and Experience and Education among others, is one of the key theorists of instructional technology. He established Chicago Laboratory School, one of the first of its kind, to test his educational theories and their social implications. Let us find out more about his contributions and their impact on society.   John Dewey: I have developed several educational theories for the purpose of having better and more efficient teaching methods. Ever since I have been against authoritarian methods of teaching and I believe that teachers should have a greater role than just teaching or merely educating the students- they should be role models who also inspire the youth who are under their supervision. I also believe that including things that interest children the most is a better motivation than using rewards and punishments in teaching.I have come up with something that I refer to as informal education which promotes the involvement and exposure of students to activities that could help them gain experience, and stimulate their thinking skills and be able to reflect on the significance of the undergone activities. This way, learning will be more than just fun and amusing, but also something that could better prepare the students for the future. The learning theory I have developed came to be known as functionalism and it encouraged mental testing and stressed studies of adaptive behavior (Clark, 1999).   Interviewer: John Dewey, indeed has contributed much to the development of instructional technology. The educational theory he has developed is still used in a lot of educational institutions today. And after having understood Mr. Dewey’s contribution, it is now time to look at the case in another perspective and learn about another leader in the field. Here is the man who supported Mr. Dewey’s theory of functionalism and has strongly advocated educational measurement, Mr. Edward L. Thorndike. What do you think are your most important contributions to instructional technology?

Friday, November 1, 2019

MUSCULOSKELETAL CASE STUDY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

MUSCULOSKELETAL CASE STUDY - Essay Example The patient states that he has had this pain in the past, but it usually went away, and it was never this severe and he has never had the tingling sensation that he is having now. He describes the pain to be located at the middle of his back, near the waist (mainly lumbar), and is exacerbated when he bends forward. There is numbness and tingling that radiates down the back of the right thigh to the toes. The pain and numbness has been increasing for the past three days without relief, and he has tried stretching, as well as over the counter Ibuprofen. He reports that the pain is so bad that he is currently out of work, has been having problems sleeping and the only thing that helps is the use of his friend’s medication (does not state which medication it is). His main concerns today are that he will not be able to return to work to make money; he has no health insurance and is concerned that he may have a herniated disk. Includes similar back pain that was never this severe, and he sought the help of a chiropractor three years ago, and with manipulation, the pain was relieved. He denies any chronic medical problems, surgeries or hospitalizations. Reports increased weight gain. He does not seek medical attention on a routine basis, nor does he have any recent blood work or imaging studies. He reports having a penicillin allergy that causes rash, and does not take any prescription medication, however, has been taking ibuprofen 800mg every 4 hours for his pain and is compliant with the regimen. He is the sole offspring, and both parents are positive for hypercholesteremia, his father has prostate cancer and has a positive family history of heart disease. A review reveals lumbar pain with radiation to the right buttock and positive for tingling and numbness to the toe. He denies urinary or bowel incontinence, nausea, vomiting, fever, abdominal pain or pain with urination, and no gross hematuria. He has decreased strength of the